Evening NEWS
DIGEST
31 Jan.2018:13 Jamadiul-1 1439:Vol:9, No:110
INDIA
SC seeks govt explanation on push back policy
on Rohingyas after centre says don't want India to become refugee capital of
world
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has asked the
central Govt to respond to allegations
in a petition that the Rohingya Muslims trying to enter India were being
forcefully pushed back to Myanmar in violation of their human rights. The
allegations were levelled by activist lawyer Prashant Bhushan. Bhushan alleged
that the Govt cannot push back those
trying to enter the country in the face of religious protection and genocide in
their home countries. Additional solicitor general Tushar Mehta protested
against this line of argument saying that the Govt cannot allow the country to be flooded by
refugees. "India will then become the refugee centre of the world,"
he said. He urged the court to defer hearing the case and leave it to the
executive Govt to address the issue at
diplomatic levels. The CJI put the hearing off eventually to march 7 but asked
the Govt to place its stand on whether
the court could examine it's push back policy and if it was against basic human
rights of refugees. NHRC, through senior advocate goal subramanian, chose to
stay silent on the push back policy but spoke up for protecting the basic human
rights of refugees already in the country. A bench led CJI Dipak Misra is
hearing a batch of petitions filed by some rohingyas against their deportation
home in the face of imminent death. The bench will also hear on March 7 another
petition demanding a comprehensive refugee identification and deportation
mechanism. The court will also deal with another plea which challenges a
Govt notification which specifically
excludes Muslims from those who can apply for refugee status in the country. economictimes
Rohingya Refugees case: SC maintains Status
Quo
Don't want India to become refugee capital of
world, govt tells SC
Centre welcomes Hindus, Sikhs but not Muslims
from other nations, Prashant Bhushan tells SC
SC seeks centre’s response on Bhushan’s plea
against pushing back of Rohingyas trying to enter India
India Received $63 Billion in Remittances in
2016, Half of it From 5 Muslim countries
New Delhi: Remittances from Indian workforce
in 5 Muslim countries accounted for more than half of the total remittances
that the country received from abroad in 2016. More than $62.74 billion (USD)
in remittances was sent to India from other countries in 2016 – $33.67 billion
came from 5 Arab nations alone, reveals a World Bank report.With $12.57
billion, UAE topped list of 135 countries from where $10 lakh or more in
remittances came to India in 2016. Other 4 Muslim nations from where big
remittances came were Saudi Arabia ($10.22 billion), Kuwait ($4.17 billion),
Qatar ($3.76 billion) and Oman ($2.95 billion).Of the $62.74 billion that India
got in remittances from its workforce scattered in the world, $55 billion came
from 10 countries including 5 Muslim countries. Other 5 were US ($10.65
billion), UK ($3.58 billion), Nepal ($2.74 billion), Canada ($2.61 billion) and
Australia ($1.76 billion). Worldwide, an estimated $574 billion (USD) was sent
by migrants to relatives in their home countries in 2016. caravandaily
Talaq issue: Muslim women feel offended by Prez’s
remark
https://www.siasat.com/news/triple-talaq-issue-muslim-women-feel-offended-presidents-remark-1309658/
New Delhi:Muslim women have raised voice
against President Ram Nath Kovind for advocating triple Talaq bill and
describing Muslim women as confined. They said the remarks made by the
president while delivering his maiden address to the joint sitting of both
Houses of Parliament regarding Muslim women are misleading and insulting. They
demanded revocation of the statement or else warned countrywide protest against
it.A press conference was held here at Press Club of India by the Federation of
29voluntary bodies of women.Federation director and head of the women cell of
AIMPLB, Dr Asma Jehra, Fatima Muzaffar from Chennai, Atiya Siddiqui from Delhi,
Yasmeen Farooqui from Jaipur, Rajasthan, Mahjabeen Naaz from Patna, Bihar,
Arifa Naser from Bangalore, Mamdooha Majid from Delhi, Nabeera Mohtasham from
Bhatkal, Zakia Nafees from UP, Sadia from Jaipur attended the conference and
jointly announced that Muslim women are not oppressed but the shariah has given
them freedom. Hence nobody should try to interfere in our shariah.It must be
noted that President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday said, “My Govt tabled a bill on Triple Talaq in Parliament
and I hope it will become a law soon. After the law comes into force, Muslim
daughter and sister can live a life free of fear and dignity.”siasat
AIMPLB to seek support to get triple talaq
bill stalled
Lucknow: All India Muslim Personal Law Board has
pinned its hope on getting support from some BJP allies to stall the bill on
instant triple divorce in the Rajya Sabha as PM
Narendra Modi pitched for its early passage in the ongoing budget
session of Parliament on Monday.To drum up support for the demand raised by the
Congress that the bill should be referred to the select committee of
Parliament, the Board members intend to meet BJP allies Shiv Sena and Akali Dal
soon.“A final decision on the strategy to be adopted to prevent the bill from
getting passed in the Rajya Sabha would be taken at the forthcoming two-day
session of the board in Hyderabad from Feb.10,” said board spokesperson
Zafaryab Jilani.“We met ex-UP CM Akhilesh Yadav last week to convey our stand
on the issue. Besides Samajwadi, AIMPLB members have also met leaders of
opposition parties like AIDMK, DMK, Telugu Desam,TMC and BSP,” he said. Besides
it, discussions would also be held on Babri-Masjid-Ram Janambhumi case hearing
which is scheduled to commence in Supreme Court on Feb.8.A controversy had
erupted when senior lawyer Kapil Sibal, representing Sunni Waqf Board in the
case, made a plea in the SC to defer the hearing till Lok Sabha polls 2019.
“Some members may want to know why such a statement was given,” said Jilani and
added that while Sibal would continue to represent them,several other senior
lawyers would also appear on behalf of the waqf board in the case. “Board had
convened an emergency meeting to discuss the issue here at Nadwa College in
Lucknow.But now we would apprise all our members at the annual general meeting
in Hyderabad,” said he.HT
Talaq bill: Ahmedabad activists knock on SC’s door, want bill’s
passage stalled
Ahmedabad:While PM Narendra Modi has appealed
to political parties to help pass the bill on instant triple talaq in the
budget session of the parliament, the issue is likely to get into a legal
tangle yet again. Four city activists have filed a plea in the Supreme Court
seeking an immediate stay on the process being taken up by the central Govt.
The plea is likely to come up for hearing soon.“Our plea to the SC is that it
should immediately stop the process of passage of this defective bill,” said
Nishant Verma, one of the petitioners. He further said, “The criminal procedure
bring induced, of arresting the accused with non-bailable clause and a penal
punishment of 3 to 7 years, in the bill is illegal and has a mala fide intent
of the Govt . Hence we have challenged it in the SC.” ahmedabadmirror
PM Modi pushes for passage of Triple Talaq
Bill, calls it ‘New Year’s gift for Muslim women’
New Delhi:PM
Narendra Modi urged the opposition parties to allow the passage of the
Triple Talaq Bill in the Budget Session which commenced Monday. In a media
address before the sitting, he appealed to the parliamentarians to prioritise
the passage of the bill, which he referred to as “a New Year gift for Muslim
women”. Union Budget will be presented on Feb.1.Reacting to PM Modi’s call to
allow easy passage of the Triple Talaq bill during the budget session, senior
Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge told ANI: “One day the President will
address the sitting, one day Budget will be presented, on two days non-official
bills will be discussed. How will things be discussed in four days? This is
just an eyewash. They want to just get done with this and go for election.”indianexpress
25 years after Babri, Governor Kalyan Singh
reads Gita, Quran, Bible, preaches tolerance
Jaipur: Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh says
he has been studying scriptures of all religions, and has come to the
conclusion that “there shouldn’t be intolerance”. Singh, who took over as
Governor in Sept.2014, said he has been reading “Rig Veda, Bhagavad Gita,
Mahabharata, Quran, Bible, Satyarth Prakash, and Guru Granth Sahib” in his
spare time, and feels that “every philosophy in the world has something good to
say. No religion has space for hatred.”Tolerance, along with economic democracy
and social justice, were the “pran tatva (life blood) of democracy”, he added.
“My thoughts may not match yours, but I will respect your thoughts,” he
said.Singh said, “Even though we may not agree with someone’s thoughts, but we
should have the capacity to tolerate them. We may counter their ideas with our
own ideas, but there shouldn’t be intolerance.”Singh’s office said that after
the Governor has finished studying the scriptures, the conclusions derived by
him will be collated to “provide benefit to the society, state and
nation”.Elaborating on what he had learnt from the scriptures, Singh, who just
celebrated his 86th birthday, said peace could be established in the world by
broadening perspective through such study, and through democracy, which
“essentially” promotes tolerance. “I want to study all of them (scriptures) so
that our perspective is not ekaangi (one-sided), so that we know about all
(religions) and what is the philosophy of a particular school of thought,” said
Singh, showing the religious texts on his table. “My words are a result of
these texts.”“Before forming an opinion, it is my belief that people should
undertake a broad study, and acquire the belief they consider best. In true
words, peace can be established in the world, hatred can be removed and we can
acquire the power to understand each other. All in all, our perspective will
widen,” he said.Indian Express
Muslims should give disputed Ayodhya site to
Hindus, says national minority panel chief
New Delhi: Muslims should be more “generous”
and give the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site in Ayodhya to Hindus,
the National Commission for Minorities chairperson has said, days before the
Supreme Court begins its final hearing in the long-running dispute.“The Supreme
Court will chart its own course, but Muslims themselves should come forward and
give away the site which is so important to Hindus to them,” Syed Ghayorul
Hasan Rizvi told ThePrint. “A mosque can be built anywhere. Anyway namaaz is
not offered there.”Doing so would ensure harmony and reduce hatred between
Hindus and Muslims, said Rizvi who has risen from the ruling BJP’s Minority
Morcha.“Muslims across the country want to bury the issue, and give away (the
disputed site) to Hindus,” he said. “The only thing they fear is that if they
give up their claim over Ayodhya, they might be under similar pressure in Kashi
and Mathura.”ThePrint
Yashwant Sinha Launches ‘Rashtra Manch’, BJP
MP Shatrughan Sinha Joins
New Delhi:
After months of snapping at the BJP, a disgruntled Yashwant Sinha today
launched a political platform, joined by a number of politicians led by BJP MP
Shatrughan Sinha.The new political platform ‘Rashtra Manch’ seeks to take the
Centre on and would start a movement against its policies, former Union finance
minister Yashwant Sinha said.Shatrughan Sinha said he had joined the platform
because he had not been given a forum in his party for expressing his views,
but added that his decision to back the front should not be seen as an
anti-party activity as it was in national interest.Trinamool Congress MP Dinesh
Trivedi, Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury, NCP MP Majeed Memon, AAP MP Sanjay Singh,
former Gujarat CM Suresh Mehta and JD(U)
leader Pavan Varma were among those who attended the event marking the launch
of the front.RLD leader Jayant Chaudhary and former Union ministers Som Pal and
Harmohan Dhawan were also present.Yashwant Sinha likened the present situation
to that which prevailed 70 years ago when Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated, on
this day and said democracy and its institutions were under attack. He claimed
that the Narendra Modi Govt had reduced
farmers to “the status of beggars” and accused it of presenting “made to order”
statistics to suit its interests.PTI
Towards ‘love jihad’ video crackdown: SC to
decide banning online circulation of clips
New Delhi: Will all online videos linked to
“love jihad” be banned? The Supreme Court is set to decide. On a petition filed
by senior advocate Indira Jaising, the SC has agreed to determine if a
direction can be issued to the Centre and state govts to stop online
circulation of videos related to the “communal myth of love jihad and communal
hatred that is currently being spread through various websites and on other
social media platforms”.In a chilling clip of Dec.6, 2017 that had gone viral,
Rajasthan resident Shambhulal Regar hacks a Muslim youth Mohammad Afrazul to
death – as the victim was allegedly in love with a Hindu woman – and burns the
body while keeping up an inflammatory communal rant against “love
jihad”.Jaising represents Gulbahar, the wife of the victim, a native of Malda,
West Bengal.Jaising had filed the petition last Thursday but some portions of
it were objectionable to the court — after which she filed an amended version
on Tuesday which will soon be listed for hearing.“Pass a writ in the nature of
mandamus(order it to perform a duty) directing both the central Govt and state Govt s to take immediate steps in
removing or cause to be removed the video of the incident of 6th Dec.2017 which
is circulating on several or other content relating to the communal myth of
love jihad and communal hatred that is currently being spread through various
websites and on other social media platforms; and/or such hate crimes like the
reprehensible murder of the husband of petitioner,” said the petition.Gulbahar
approached the top court also to demand an impartial investigation from an
independent national agency which she said should also look into spreading of
hate speech. “I am filing this petition against the brutal, inhuman and
cold-hearted murder of my husband, Afrazul Khan, by one Shambhu Lal Raigar,”
said the plea. indiatoday
Kerala: NIA books 9 on charges of forcible
conversion of Gujarat woman to Islam
New Delhi: NIA said it had registered a case
against 9 people hailing from Kerala and Bengaluru for allegedly being involved
in forcible conversion of a Gujarat-based
woman and attempting to sell her off to IS terrorists in Saudi Arabia. A
NIA spokesman said in a statement that the case was registered against
following a complaint from the 25-year-old woman. She alleged that Muhammed
Riyas Rasheed had lured her and taken objectionable pictures of her, besides
illegally confining her. The accused married her through deceit by forging
documents and “forcibly converted her to Islam.”Rasheed, according to NIA,
illegally confined and threatened the woman in Kerala before taking her to
Jeddah in August, 2017 for joining the IS.Besides Rasheed, Nahas Abdulkhader
and Abdul Muhasin K of Kannur (Kerala); Muhammed Nazish TK of Perigadi; Danish
Najeeb, Gazila, Moin Patel and Iliyas Mohammed of Bengaluru; and Fawas Jamal of
Peruvaram have been named in the FIR.The case, originally registered in
Ernakulam district of Kerala, was filed for criminal conspiracy and pursuant
unlawful activities prejudicial to the maintenance of communal harmony besides
wrongful confinement, extortion, rape, forgery and forceful religious
conversion with the common intention of recruitment to IS terrorist.thehindu
Petition in Kerala HC accusing Kamala Das
Suraiya biopic of promoting alleged love jihad
Kochi: A petition was today filed in the
Kerala High Court alleging that Kamal-directed Malayalam film "Aami"
based on writer late Madhavikutty, was sending a message favouring love jihad.
Madhavikutty had converted to Islam and took the name of Kamala Suraiya.In his
petition, lawyer KP Ramachandran sought a direction to the Censor Board to
ensure that the upcoming movie would be certified only after making sure that
it picturised the real life of Madhavikutty."The film (Aami) was directed
by omitting the real life incidents of Madhavikutty, with a view to justify
love jihad?. Such a film comes to the fore in the wake of such cases (of love
jihad) pending before the apex court and NIA investigating such cases,"
the petition said.Ramachandran argued that Kamal, director of the film, is often
depicted as pro-radical faction of the Islamic society."The conversion of
Madhavikutty into Islam was the beginning of love jihad in Kerala. Love jihad
is the grave menace the society faces in the southern state today," he
alleged. "Now the well oiled machineries are working for meeting the said
end. Aami is intended to be a catalytic agent for the said process,"Ramachandran
said. "Aami" is based on the autobiography of Kamala Surayya, Ente
Katha (My Story). She wrote under a pseudonym Kamala Das in English. PTI
Grand mufti of Kashmir Nasir ul Islam says
Muslims mistreated in India, need to demand separate country
The vice-chairman of J&k Muslim Personal
Board and the deputy grand mufti of the state, Nasir ul Islam, has stirred a
fresh controversy in the Valley by saying Muslims in India need to demand a
separate country for themselves. At a press conference in Srinagar, Nasir said
Muslims are being "harassed under various pretexts", a report on
Greater Kashmir said."India is moving on the path of intolerance. Muslims
are being harassed on the various pretexts. Sometimes they are being harassed
on the pretext of 'love jihad', sometimes it is cow vigilantism or triple
talaq," said Nasir. He also criticised BJP-PDP alliance in power in
J&K, saying they have pushed the local population "towards
destruction". Reacting to the recent firing by security forces which
resulted in the death of two civilians, he said India will have to leave Kashmir
some day. "India is an occupier in Kashmir. It can't fool Kashmiris
anymore. It has to leave sooner or later," he said. firstpost
Watching soccer is un-Islamic: Darul Uloom
cleric says women shouldn't watch 'men playing with bare knees'
Lucknow: A senior Darul Uloom cleric has
issued a religious decree saying that Muslim women should not watch men playing
soccer. Mufti Athar Qasmi said that watching men "playing with bare knees"
violated the tenets of Islam and was forbidden for women. Qasmi is cleric at
Darul Uloom, Asia's largest Muslim seminary in Deoband.The cleric also lashed
out at the men who allow their wives to watch football even on TV."Do you
have no shame? Do you not fear God? You let her watch these kinds of
things,"he said in his sermon Friday."Why do women need to watch
these football matches? What they will gain by looking at footballer's thighs.
Their attention will be on that only and they will even miss the scores," he
said.AP
Wazoo using water heated with stolen
electricity can dull impact of namaz:Deoband clerics
Meerut: Amid raids on power pilferers in the
region, ulemas in Deoband have said wazoo (ablution before namaz) using water
heated with stolen electricity can dull the impact of the prayer. It is
imperative for a Muslim devotee to perform wazoo (washing of hands and feet)
before offering namaz.To a query raised by a man whether it is okay to conduct
wazoo with stolen power, Deoband cleric, Maulana Arshad Farooqui, said, “Wazoo
is a religious act and using water heated with stolen power can dull the impact
of namaz.” Currently, UPPCL teams are conducting raids on power pilferers in
Saharanpur district. A power corporation official said, “The statement from the
clerics will actually help us in the long run.”TOI
AP: Under fire, maulanas tender apology over
Surya Namaskaram
Vijayawada: 2maulanas who took part in Surya
Namaskaram programme of the State Govt
recently have tendered an apology to the Muslim clerics and the
community for violating their faith on Tuesday.Maulana Abdul Khadhir, Imam of
the Shahi Masjid in One Town, and maulana Fayaaz who runs a girls madrasa in
Ajith Singh Nagar, offered prayers to the Sun god along with CM N. Chandrababu Naidu and some heads of Hindu
and Christian religions.However, the message given by the maulanas at the
programme before a huge gathering of students did not go well with the Muslim
fraternity.In a video being shared on the social media, they vowed that such an
incident would not repeat.The duo explained that they were invited to the
programme by the district Collector who asked them to speak about anything
written about Sun in the Koran.“We mistakenly uttered the words about Sun due
to confusion in translation and tender apology to the Muslim community,” they
said in the video. When contacted, maulana Khadhir said that they realised the
mistake after the community raised objections.“We have immediately apologised
in the video and would do the same in public,” he said.Meanwhile, the religious
heads are planning action against them.The Hindu
Ban nikah halala, polygamy, Muslim divorcee
urges HC
MUMBAI: 5 years after a Muslim woman from
Nalasopara was given divorce by her husband, she approached the Bombay high
court on Tuesday seeking to outlaw the practice of nikah halala and polygamy in
the community. She also urged the court to set aside the triple talaq granted
to her by her husband.33-year-old woman, who has requested that her name be
withheld, has called bigamy, polygamy and nikah halala as the "biggest
problems suffered by Muslim women in India today". Nikah halala is the
practice where a Muslim divorcee has to marry another person, consummate the
marriage and then get divorced to remarry her former husband. Advocate Nitin
Satpute, counsel for the petitioner, said the Muslim Women (Protection of
Rights on Marriage) Bill 2017, introduced by the Union Govt , has failed to
take note of these practices. "The Bill bans instant triple talaq and
penalizes men. However, there is no mention about the equally problematic
customs of polygamy and nikah halala that afflict Muslim women and is
considered as legal, as per the personal law of the community," said
Satpute. The petition is likely to be mentioned for hearing later this week.TOI
Bareilly DM who accused right-wing groups of
fomenting communal trouble in Muslim areas, deletes FB post, apologises after
being summoned
DM of Bareilly who accused right-wing Hindu
groups of fomenting communal trouble in UP has deleted his controversial
Facebook post and apologized for his remark after being summoned to Lucknow.
Raghvendra Vikram Singh, who was a Short Service Commission Army officer before
joining the civil services, in a Facebook post shared on Monday had asked why it
has become a 'trend to forcefully enter Muslim localities and raise
Anti-Pakistan slogans'.His remarks had come against the backdrop of communal
clashes in Kasganj city where one died, and shops and buses torched in clashes
between two communities.In his Facebook post in Hindi, he had said, “A very
strange trend has started of late. Take out processions by force through Muslim
dominated localities and raise anti-Pakistan slogans. Why? Are these people
Pakistani? The same thing had happened in Khailam village of Bareilly. Then
stones were pelted, FIRs lodged."He further said that the fringe outfits
are tearing down the social fabric of the country in the name of nationalism.
He also compared the Kasganj violence with the one that happened in Khailam, a
Muslim dominated area, where clashes took place when members from the Hindu
community carried their Kanwar yatra through the area.However, 2 days later,
Singh was summoned to Lucknow, reported the Indian Express. Deputy CM Keshav
Maurya said DM was speaking in the “language of politicians”. UP Govt
also warned strict action against the DM.Govt spokesperson and senior minister Srikant Sharma
said, “We are taking this post very seriously,” adding, “Officers should keep
away from sensational remarks.”Singh has since deleted his Facebook post and
apologised for hurting sentiments.Later,NDTV reported that Singh told media
persons that his point was that "you need to have police permission or
permission by the administration for certain things", referring to the
ABVP bike rally during which the violence had broken out. Reports had suggested
that the police had not given permission for the bike rally.He also posted a
clarification on Facebook where he maintained that his earlier post was
regarding a particular incident in Bareilly during Kanwar yatra, which had
created a law and order situation.
outlookindia
Bareilly DM Condemns ‘Trend’ of Entering
Muslim Localities, Shouting Anti-Pak Slogans
Officers like Bareilly DM are rare today:
Tauqir Raza Khan
Bareilly: Muslim cleric has extended his
support to DM RV Singh over Singh’s recent facebook post.“RV Singh is a true
Jihadi officer. Officers with a character like him are rare these days.
Everyone must support his views,” said Tauqir Raza Khan.“Anti-secular forces in
the country are getting stronger each day but officers like his (DM) will never
allow violence in their presence,” Tauqir said. He also said he will visit family
members of Chandan Gupta in Kasganj today.HT
Deputy CM Maurya slams Bareilly DM for FB post
Kasganj clashes: Rahul Upadhyay, man whose
rumoured death escalated riots is alive; 4 held for rumours
At least 4 people were arrested on Tuesday by
UP Police for spreading rumours about
the death of Rahul Upadhyay, which triggered the violence in the crisis-hit
city of Kasganj in UP . The arrests were made after Rahul himself came to the
fore and clarified that he is safe and sound, and nothing has happened to him.
After the violence broke out in Kasganj, the rumour of Rahul’s death further
aggravated the rioting public.Upon hearing the news of his death and how it had
led the riots to fatal levels, Rahul Upadhyay approached media clearing air
about his rumoured demise. While speaking to media, Rahul said, “One of my
friends informed me about rumours on the social media about me getting killed
during the Kasganj violence, but I was not present in Kasganj at the time of
riots. I had gone to my village and I am absolutely fine.”Before Rahul’s
comments, Inspector General Aligarh, Sanjeev Gupta on Monday said that Rahul Upadhyay
is alive while confirming the arrest of 4 people who spread the fake news of
his death on social media. “Contrary to rumours spread on social media, Rahul
Upadhyay is alive. We have arrested four people for spreading rumours,” said
Gupta.Earlier on Republic Day, riots broke out in Kasganj when Chandan Gupta
lost his life during a quarrel between two communities. When the news of
Rahul’s death surfaced, it took the riots to another level as three shops, two
buses and a car were torched by the angry mob over the course of next 3 days.
The police moved in quickly to control the violence imposing section 144 in
Kasganj and arresting at least 112 people.NewsX
Kasganj violence: Muslim man's garment shop
burnt down; probe launched
Family of Akram attacked in Kasganj on way to
meet pregnant wife just wants to move on
Decoding Kasganj from ground zero: Trouble was
brewing in the area, police slow to respond
Kasganj: UP govt is checking if violence was
pre-planned
Kasganj: Prime accused in murder of Chandan
Gupta arrested, say police
Bareilly:Police arrested on Wednesday the
prime accused in the murder of 23-year-old Abhishek Gupta alias Chandan during
communal clashes on Republic Day in UP ’s Kasganj town. UP Police identified the accused as Saleem
Javed. Police said Saleem, his two brothers – identified only by their first
names Waseem and Naseem – and 17 others have been charged with murder and under
other sections of IPC.HT
Kasganj Violence: Video Shows 'Hindu youths'
Holding Swords, Guns Charging Towards Muslim Area
UP
police is now probing a new video allegedly from violence-hit Kasganj
that shows a group of 'Hindu youths'-- holding swords and guns-- as they march
towards a Muslim dominated area. The video clip that was shot from roof of a
tehsil office moments before clashes broke out in the two communities, has been
doing rounds on social media, reported TOI.The group of aggressive men is seen
holding guns, clubs and sticks as the move ahead in a narrow street. Another
can be spotted marching on with 'Tiranga' (flag).Visuals of 22-year-old Chandan
Gupta participating in the "Tiranga Yatra" is also among the clips,
reported the NDTV.The police are investigating the authenticity of the
video.outlookindia
UP:One shot dead, 5 injured after 2 groups
clash in Amethi
One person was shot dead and five people were
injured when two groups fired at each other in UP’s Amethi town on Tuesday. The
incident occurred in Jagdishpur locality in front of the Nirikshan Bhavan,
Jansatta reported.A 45-year-old man, identified as Ashfaq, was shot dead, a
senior police official told Scroll.in. The police said that the attack was related
to personal rivalry between Ashfaq and an unidentified person who had hired the
gunmen to kill him.The gunmen, who were later caught by the residents and
handed over to the police, sustained injuries when a crude bomb exploded during
the fight. The police identified one of them as Amit Chaubey, a resident of the
city of Chhapra in Bihar’s Saran district, but did not disclose the identity of
the other accused. scroll
Gang war leaves one dead, 5 injured in Amethi
Meerut : Hindu Yuva Vahini men thrash Muslim
youths, assault journalist
Meerut: Even as violence in Kasganj has kept
the state on boil, another incident in Meerut flared tension after a mob of
Hindu Yuva Vahini activists thrashed Muslim youths for alleged harassment of a
girl on Tuesday.According to the police, mob alleged that a youth Zahid Khan
was harassing a girl from other community. Khan, along with his family members,
approached the family of the girl claiming that they have been framed in a case
of harassment."Zahid and the girl have been friends for the past 4 years. There
was some misunderstanding between the two and this was now taken up as
harassment by the right-wing groups. The two families wanted to sit together
and settle the matter," Zahid's elder brother Sarik Khan said.The mob led
by HYV's state secretary Nagendra Tomar caught hold of four youths in Mohanpuri
area and brutally thrashed them in full public view. "We caught hold of
the accused and handed him over to police. Unidentified people in our group
tried to rough them up," Tomar said.This was followed by HYV men
assaulting a journalist covering the incident. They also snatched his mobile
phone.2 HYV men, including Nagendra Tomar, were detained after the journalist
complained to an official.timesofindia
Hathras tense after Dalit youth’s body found
near mosque
Agra: Tension prevailed in Hathras after the
body of a 27-year-old Dalit youth, Amit Gautam, was found lying at the gate of
a mosque in Khandari Gadhi on Tuesday morning.According to police, the body was
spotted early in the morning by some passersby. The victim reportedly had head
Injuries that had bled profusely. The body has been sent for a post-mortem.
Additional police force was deployed in the area to avoid any untoward
incident, said a senior police officer.SP, Hathras, Ghule Susheel said a case
has been registered against 5 people — Mohd Alam, Saddam, Khalid, Sukail and
Ashu. Saddam has been arrested.Susheel said further investigations were on. timesofindia
Mangalore VHP head justifies killing of Muslim
man
Bengaluru:A suo moto case was registered on
Tuesday against the Mangalore district VHP President Jagadish Shenava for
delivering a controversial speech during a book release programme held at the
TV Ramana Pai Hall on Jan.28. On Jan.28, a b ook “Hadedavvana Shapa” was
released at the TV Ramana Pai Hall. During the programme, Jagadish Shenava had
said, “Basheer’s murder was revenge for Deepak Rao’s murder. We are not worried
about Basheer’s murder. If Sharath Madival was murdered as a revenge for
Ashraf’s murder why then Basheer cannot be assaulted for innocent Deepak’s
murder?” Basheer, a Muslim man was attacked and killed in Mangaluru allegedly
in retaliation for the murder of Deepak Rao, a Hindu man.Various organizations
have demanded the arrest of Jagadish Shenava and submitted memorandums to the
Deputy Commissioner. newsnation
Bhima Koregaon clashes: Judge recuses himself
from hearing Hindutva leader’s anticipatory bail plea
Justice Bhushan Gavai of Bombay High Court recused
himself from hearing the anticipatory bail plea of Milind Ekbote (pictured
above), the leader of the Hindutva outfit Samasta Hindu Aghadi, which is
accused of inciting violence in Bhima Koregaon on Jan.1.Ekbote’s lawyer will
mention the matter again before another bench,ANI repeorted.Ekbote, whose
anticipatory bail application was rejected by a court in Pune on Jan. 23, had
approached the HC on Monday. Scroll.in
Shopian army firing: Third civilian dies of
bullet injury
Srinagar:A 23-year-old man, who was hit by a
bullet allegedly after army soldiers fired on protesters in south Kashmir’s
Shopian district last week, died at a hospital in Srinagar early on Wednesday,
officials said, taking the toll in the incident to three. Rayees Ahmed Ganai of
Narpora village was shifted in a critical condition with a bullet injury in the
head to the SKIMS in Srinagar. Suhail Lone and Javid Bhat, both in their 20s,
were killed on Saturday.hindustantimes
Villagers allege army fired first on Shopian
protesters, political tussle brews
Terror funding case: Delhi court dismisses
bail plea of Kashmiri separatist leader Shabir Shah
New Delhi: Delhi’s Patiala House court dismissed
the bail plea of Kashmiri separatist leader Shabir Shah in an alleged money
laundering case related to terror funding. ED is probing a case of terror
funding against Shah based on a case first registered by Delhi Police’s Special
Cell after arrest of an alleged hawala dealer named Aslam Wani, who reportedly
claimed that he passed on Rs 2.25 crore to Shah. indianexpress
Kerala: 2,000 self-help groups embrace Islamic
banking model to offer interest-free loans: newindianexpress
Kozhikode: Islamic banks are yet to gain
traction in Kerala, but nearly 2,000 self-help groups (SHGs) in eight districts
have been operating on the lines of Islamic banking under Sharia norms,
offering interest-free loans to its members.According to Interest Free
Associations’ Coordination Committee (INFACC), a society working to bring all
SHGs under one roof for promoting zero-interest microfinance, more than 40,000
members have been benefiting from the scheme, which is aimed at helping people
escape from the clutches of the blade mafia and loan sharks.“We can truly say
that this is a successful model of Islamic banking at micro level, promoting
zero-interest microfinance. Though we launched the project to promote the
microfinance model in 2012, it was only in the last two years that we could
penetrate at the grassroot level and bring SHGs from Kasargod, Kannur,
Kozhikode, Malappuram, Wayanad, Thrissur, Ernakulam and Alappuzha under one
roof to coordinate their activities. In due course, we will expand our
operations to other districts of Kerala,” said INFACC chairman TK Hussein. Each
SHG has 20 members or more and the working capital is raised from the money
that they contribute.“Once a sufficient fund is raised, a member can avail a
loan after finalising a repayment period. The model has become successful as
the people can rely on their SHG for money in case of an emergency and that too
without any hassle. As the SHGs are managed by people of their respective
localities, they know the economic background of each member and their
repayment capacity.Loans are sanctioned only by a committee after analysing the
merit of each application,” Hussein added.As per a study, there has been a big
spike in the number of institutions offering interest-free loans since 1990.
Between 1970 and 2010, Malappuram registered the highest number of such
institutions with 165, followed by Kozhikode(72) and Ernakulam(32), study
shows.
Give info on Haj applicants in 65-70 age group
who never got chance: Supreme Court to Centre
New Delhi: Supreme Court has asked the Centre
to furnish details of Haj applicants aged between 65 and 70 years who have not
been able to go for the pilgrimage despite applying four times. The direction
came on a plea by the Kerala Haj Committee seeking an all-India draw of lots to
decide the Haj quota. A bench of CJI Dipak Misra and Justices AM Khanwilkar and
D Y Chandrachud asked the Centre to file its response by Feb.19. The top court
clarified that it was only an ad-interim measure. “Purely as an ad-interim
measure, it is directed that Pinky Anand, Additional Solicitor General, shall
file a statement with regard to the fifth time applicants, who have crossed the
age of 65 years and are below 70 years and have never been able to go for the
pilgrimage,” the bench ordered.Appearing for the petitioner, advocate Harris
Beeran said under the previous Haj policy, those who had not succeeded despite
applying four times were automatically considered eligible the fifth time. But
this had been dropped, he said. indian express
After indictment by in-house probe, Allahabad
HC judge Narayan Shukla goes on leave
New Delhi : All judicial work has been
withdrawn from Justice Shri Narayan Shukla of the Allahabad High Court
following his indictment by an in-house inquiry committee that probed
allegations against the judge in the Medical Council of India (MCI) case.
Justice Shukla has proceeded on 90 days leave which was sanctioned by the
Governor of UP over the weekend. His leave application followed the CJI’s move
on the report of the in-house inquiry committee, which contained adverse
remarks against the judge for alleged “judicial impropriety” in his judgments
in the GCRG Institute of Medical Sciences case.This was different from the
criminal case of Prasad Education Trust in which CBI had filed an FIR and the
CJI had denied CBI the permission to include Justice Shukla’s name in the FIR.
But as the two cases involve the same judge and are related under the Medical
Council of India (MCI) ban order, the CBI is keen on renewing its application
seeking CJI’s permission to file an FIR against Justice Shukla.indianexpress
Reply to contempt plea on cow vigilantism, SC
tells UP, Rajasthan, Haryana
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has sought
responses from the Chief Secretaries of UP, Rajasthan, and Haryana on a
contempt plea filed by Tushar Gandhi, great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, for
their failure to curb violence by cow vigilantes in violation of top court’s
orders. A bench of CJI Dipak Misra, Justice AM Khanwilkar, and Justice DY
Chandrachud issued the notice on Tushar Gandhi’s plea that instead of putting
down activities of cow vigilante groups, there was a multi-fold increase in
their attacks.IANS
SC seeks Maharashtra’s response on Malegaon
blast accused Colonel Purohit’s plea
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has sought the
Maharashtra govt’s response on a plea by Malegaon bomb blast accused Lt. Col.
Prasad Shrikant Purohit.In the plea, Purohit challenged the proceedings against
him under UAPA by NIA Court in the absence of valid sanction from the competent
authority.IANS
Godhra Train Burning: Accused Held After 16
Years
Ahmedabad: On the run for the last 16 years,
an accused in the 2002 Godhra train carnage was on Tuesday arrested by Gujarat
Police, an official said.Yakub Pataliya (63) was arrested from Godhra by a team
of B Division police in the town after they received a tip-off that he was
spotted in a locality on Tuesday morning, the official said.Pataliya's brother,
Kadir Pataliya, was also arrested in 2015, and he died while being in jail
while undergoing trial.His other brother, Ayub Pataliya, is serving life
imprisonment in Vadodara Central Jail.In a judgement passed in Oct.2017, the
Gujarat High Court had commuted the death sentence of 11 to life imprisonment,
while upholding the life sentence of 20 other convicts.A trial court had
convicted 31 and acquitted 63 accused. The HC had upheld the acquittals.PTI
UP India’s most polluted state: Greenpeace
report
Lucknow:With 15 of its cities among 30 cities
with highest levels of toxic air in the country, UP is India’s most polluted state, says a
Greenpeace India report. Report - Airpocalypse II - is based on air pollution
related data collected from Central and State Pollution Control Boards’ and
Committees’ annual reports and their websites and through applications under
RTI wherever data was unavailable or gaps existed in the available data.The
report brought out the list of most polluted cities in the country based on
particulate matter data of PM10 levels for 280 cities during 2016 and in some
cases also 2015, covering large parts of the country.PM Narendra Modi’s constituency Varanasi turned
out to be the worst polluted city of UP. Countrywide, it came sixth, a rung
above than Ghaziabad. New Delhi topped list while Lucknow was 18th among the 30
most polluted cities and towns of the country.Other towns and cities in UP on
the list are Hapur, Bareilly, Firozabad, Kanpur, Agra, NOIDA, Allahabad, and
Mathura where PM10 levels were way above permissible limits.The report reveals
that none of the 280 cities with 630 million people comply with the PM10 levels
in the air as fixed by WHO at 20.Among some of the most polluted cities are
Varanasi (PM10 level at 236), Ghaziabad (236), Hapur (235), Bareilly (226),
Firozabad (223), Kanpur (217), Lucknow (211), Agra (197), NOIDA (195),
Moradabad (192), Allahabad (191) and Gajraula (172).HT
‘I wonder who they voted for’: Indians facing
identity crisis in US under Trump
Mumbai:A college student has shaved off his
beard. A techie with a work visa is afraid he’ll never get another job. A young
woman says she will never see Republicans the same way.It’s a confusing time
for Indians in America. And while there is support within their neighbourhoods,
and often outrage against the ‘tell them to go home’ attitudes surfacing in
pockets of the country, the sense of being different, of standing out from the
crowd, has become heightened since the start of the Trump administration.Take
Sushovan Sircar, a student at Georgetown University in Washington DC. He used
to sport a luxuriant beard that completed his hipster look. Last month, the
28-year-old student of cybersecurity policy decided to shave.“I have become
acutely aware of my skin colour in the last few months, after the rise of alleged
hate crimes against Indians and Indians mistaken for ‘Arabs’,” he says. “The
last two months have seen three violent attacks against people of Indian origin
in Kansas city, Kent and South Carolina, which resulted in two deaths. I didn’t
want to stand out any more than I already do, and my family back home has been
worried too. So I shaved off my beard, and the absurdity of this fear is
saddening,”he adds.Development professional Apala Guhathakurta, 24, describes
New York as a “safe bubble”.At work, she says she and her colleagues watched in
distress as Hillary Clinton lost to Donald Trump, who had run a campaign built
largely on anti-immigrant, anti-outsourcing rhetoric."After results, our
entire organisation mourned,” says Guhathakurta, who works in the field of
public health, with a special focus on women and girls. “We already had
indications of how our work would be affected. We also mourned for the pure
misogynistic, nationalistic, and manipulative way he won the election.”HT
Forces trying to divert our attention from
real issues, but we aren't fools, says Prakash Raj as hundreds come together to
promote harmony in Mysuru
Bengaluru:Indians won't be fooled by forces
trying to divert their attention from real issues, actor Prakash Raj said
Tuesday at a Mysuru event where citizens formed a human chain to promote peace
and communal harmony. The "human chain for harmony," to which Prakash
Raj invited his Twitter followers, was organised on Martyr's Day, the death
anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.The veteran artiste said the event was "a
warning bell to those inciting violence in the name of religion, caste and
language."The organisers of the Karnataka for Harmony event said it was
all about forging human solidarity and transcending party affiliations. indiatoday
Hundreds come together to promote harmony in
State
WORLD
Saudis say $107bn recovered from graft, 56 still
held
Riyadh:Saudi Arabia's attorney general said on
Tuesday $107 billion has been recovered so far in a major crackdown on
high-level corruption and that 56 suspects were still being investigated. Sheikh
Saud al-Mojeb said he has completed inquiries into 381 high-profile corruption
suspects and decided to keep 56 in custody and free the rest.Those released
include individuals proven not guilty but also others who had agreed financial
settlements with the Govt after
admitting corruption charges, he said.Total settlements with the suspects had
topped 400 billion riyals in various forms of assets handed over that included
property, securities and cash.AFP
11 countries speed up funding for Palestinians
after US cuts
Geneva: The head of UN agency for Palestinian
refugees said Tuesday that Russia, Kuwait and nine European countries have
agreed to speed up their contributions to help fill a shortfall left by the
Trump administration's decision to greatly reduce crucial US
funding.Commissioner General Pierre Krahenbuhl of the UN Relief and Works
Agency also said it has received no specifics about reforms sought by the
United States, suggesting politics- notably surrounding US decision to
recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital- were at play.AP
Israel to ask international donors to fund
$1bn plan for Gaza
Israel will ask international donors to fund a
$1 billion plan for the occupied Gaza Strip, intended to alleviate the
territory’s humanitarian crisis, reports Haaretz.Israeli officials will put
forward the proposal today at an emergency meeting of donor states in
Brussels.According to Haaretz, “plan’s centrepiece will be Israeli assistance
in building infrastructure projects, including desalination plants, electricity
lines and a gas pipeline, as well as upgrading the Erez industrial park on the
Israeli-Gazan border.”The occupied Gaza Strip has been under a crippling
Israeli blockade for more than a decade, restrictions denounced by
international rights and aids groups as collective
punishments.middleeastmonitor
Poll: Majority of Israelis back deportation of
African migrants: middleeastmonitor
A majority of Israelis back the planned
deportation of non-Jewish African migrants, according to a new poll conducted
by Israel Hayom and New Wave Research.As reported by Arutz Sheva, 58% of
Israelis polled agreed that Israel needs to deport Eritrean and Sudanese
migrants, compared to 23% who
disagreed.The poll also found that 51 %
of respondents believed the migrants to be “job seekers”, while 37% believed them to be asylum seekers.Meanwhile,
59 % of Israelis do not believe that
Israel has a “moral obligation” towards non-Jewish African migrants, compared
to 24 % who believe Israel does.
Israeli army shoots dead Palestinian teen in
West Bank
Israeli forces have shot dead a Palestinian
teenager in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian Ministry of Health has
confirmed. Layth Abu Naim, 16, was shot in the head with live ammunition during
a confrontation with the Israeli army in the village of al-Mughayir, northeast
of the occupied West Bank town of Ramallah. According to local media, Abu Naim
- a high school student-was shot at point-blank range.The confrontations reportedly
erupted after Israeli forces raided the village. aljazeera
Egyptian opposition calls for boycott of
'absurd' poll
A coalition of Egyptian opposition groups have
called for an election boycott, calling the vote an "absurdity bordering
on madness" after all serious candidates were either arrested or subjected
to a campaign of intimidation.In a joint statement, eight Egyptian opposition
parties and 150 pro-democracy public figures urged Egyptians to stay away from
the March polls in protest, accusing the Govt
of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of preventing "any fair
competition"."It is not right for us to surrender to what has become
an absurdity bordering on madness," said Abdel-Geleel Mustafa, a veteran
opposition figure, at a news conference in Cairo.Hamdeen Sabahi, Sisi's only
rival in the 2014 presidential elections, launched the campaign under the
slogan, "Stay at home."Aljazeera
Indonesian Muslim flight attendants told to
wear headscarves
Banda Aceh:Authorities in the Indonesian province
of Aceh have ordered Muslim flight attendants to wear headscarves when flying
into the ultra-conservative Islamic region, officials confirmed on Wednesday.
Aceh is the only province in the predominantly Muslim country to implement
Islamic law. Muslims elsewhere practice a moderate form of the religion,
leaving women free to choose whether to cover their heads.The regional Govt ,
allowed greater autonomy under a 2001 peace deal with the central Govt , sent a
letter to national carrier Garuda Indonesia and budget carriers, such as
Malaysia’s AirAsia and Firefly.“All female stewardesses must wear a ‘jilbab’
(headscarf) Muslim fashion in accordance with the rules of sharia,” the
authorities said in the letter.Non-Muslim flights attendants were not required
to wear headscarves, but Muslim staff would be asked to wear them on flights in
and out of Aceh, said Mawardi Ali, chief of the Aceh Besar region where the
airport is located.Reuters
Malaysia’s Top Court Favours Hindu Woman,
Voids Conversion of Kids to Islam by Ex-Husband
Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia's top court said in a
landmark decision that both parents must consent to the religious conversion of
a minor, ruling unanimously in favor of a Hindu woman whose ex-husband converted
their 3 children to Islam without telling her.The ruling ended a nine-year
legal battle for M. Indira Gandhi, whose former husband became a Muslim and
converted their 3 children in 2009. He also snatched one of the children, then
11 months old, from the family home.She won custody of the three children and
challenged their conversions in civil courts in Malaysia's dual-court system. A
lower court annulled them, but the Court of Appeal overturned the ruling,
saying civil courts had no jurisdiction over Islamic conversions. The ruling
was appealed to the nation's highest court.AP
We are Hindu, Indira’s children declare
confidently after Muslim conversion quashed
US lifts ban on refugees from North Korea and 10 Muslim countries
Washington: US has lifted a ban on admissions
to refugees from 11 countries whose applicants it designated “high-risk” and
announced tougher vetting measures to weed out potential extremists and
criminals.Trump administration refused to identify 11 ‘high-risk’ nations,
citing “law enforcement sensitivities”. But officials with knowledge of the
list said the countries included Egypt, Iran, Libya, South Sudan, Yemen, Sudan,
Iraq, Mali, North Korea, Somalia and Syria.All but North Korea and South Sudan
are Muslim majority.freepressjournal
6.1 magnitude quake rattles Afghanistan; girl
killed in Pakistan's Quetta town
A 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck northern
Afghanistan on Wednesday and tremors were felt as far India and Pakistan, where
one girl was killed and 11 people were injured.The quake hit at 12:37 IST near
Afghanistan’s northern border with Tajikistan in the Hindu Kush mountains at a
depth of 191 km, the US Geological Survey said.PTI
Syria opposition rejects Sochi constitution
plan
Participants of a Russia-hosted conference for
peace in Syria have agreed to set up a commission to rewrite the war-torn
country's constitution. Staffan de Mistura, UN Special Envoy for Syria, said on
Tuesday that delegates at the two-day conference at the Black Sea resort of
Sochi, agreed to include both Govt and opposition officials in the 150-member
committee. De Mistura said the final agreement on the committee would be
reached in the UN-led diplomatic process in Geneva based on UN Security Council
Resolution 2254 - which serves as a framework for political transition in
Syria.But the fate of President Bashar al-Assad, a key sticking point that has
repeatedly caused ongoing negotiations to fail, was not mentioned in the final
statement.Syria's major opposition groups, who boycotted the event, rejected proposal.
aljazeera
UN appeals for emergency funds for Palestine,
Syria
UN has launched an urgent financial appeal for
its emergency programmes in Syria and the occupied Palestinian territories. UN's
Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) said on Tuesday it needs $800m to provide
life-saving aid including food, water, shelter and medical assistance.Pierre
Krahenbuhl, UNRWA's commissioner-general, said the funds were needed to enable
the agency to "continue delivering desperately needed relief to those
affected by deepening emergency situations". "However, the agency's
critical financial crisis following the reduction in the US funds threatens our
ability to deliver these vital services," he said.aljazeera
FLASH: VIEWS & NEWS
Ground report: Despite peace meet in riot-hit
Kasganj, Muslim residents say they feel like targets:Abhishek Dey
Tiranga of Hindutva Bikers in Kasganj is Not
Mine:Apoorvanand
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